Thursday, July 28, 2011

The Body temple (Part 1)

Click on the photograph (of Sri Paramahamsa Sachchidanada Yogeeswarar) to enlarge.Cuddapah Sri Paramahamsa Sachchidananda Yogeeswarar, born in Kanchipuram on February 16th, 1865 and attained 'nirvikalpa samadhi' on January 7th, 1957, was a great devotee of Ekaambreswara Nadha of Kanchipuram from the age of 12. It is believed that He had the darshan of Lord Ekaambreswara in the guise of a sage. The website www.cuddapahswami.org has lot more information about His Holiness.In His book, "Shareeradevaalaya Rahasyaardhapaarijaathamu", His Holiness Sri Paramahamsa Sachchidananda Yogeeswarar has shown His body as the temple of God. He has explained as follows:-As per the photograph above, in the lying posture, He has stated that the elders have determined the feet to be the "Gopuram" (tower) of temple.The ten fingers outlining both the feet are the ten "Kalashams" on top of the Gopuram. As we enter the temple through the "Gopuram-Feet", we first encounter "Prajaapathi" in the form of the "Dhwajasthambam"(Prajapathi is the Supreme God Who presides over procreation and is the Protector of the Universe).In order to dispel any doubts that may arise in the minds of the readers, His Holiness has explained why the male reproductive organ is depicted as Prajaapathi. As the Creator of women, men, elephants, horses, cows, buffaloes, donkeys, dogs, deers, other wild and tame animals, crawling creatures like snakes, tortoises, ants, bugs,worms etc. and flying creatures like innumerable varieties of birds, mosquitoes, creatures that live in water like fish, and other sea -creatures, it is but natural that the reproductive organ of the male stands for the Dhwajasthambam. The primary deity for Prajaapathi is Lord Brahma according to epics. Moreover, the navel is placed in front of Prajaapathi. This navel represents the "Bali Peetham". The Bali Peetham is where the sacrifice is performed. His Holiness has named the 10 sacrifices one must perform in this place:-1)Desire:- Desire for somebody's wife, one's own wife, sons, daughters, wealth, accumulation of property. Narakasura had perished due to this quality.2)Anger:-Unable to bear other's prosperity and even attempting to hinder their growth. Bakasura had perished due this quality.3)Selfishness:-Enjoying one's own wealth greedily, not sharing even a little with anybody. Duryodhana had perished due to this quality.4)Fascination:-For mother, children, spouse, not being satisfied with one's own wealth-trying to accumulate more and more property. King Dasharadha had perished due to fascination for son, Lord Rama.5)Arrogance:- Excessive success and accumulation of wealth could lead one to this state, where the native does not care for the feelings of others. Karthaveeryaarjuna perished due to this quality.6)Spitefulness:-Not being able to bear others' prosperity even though the native himself is prosperous and happy. Trying to subjugate others and their growth. Sishupala became the victim of Lord Krishna's discus due to this quality.7)Pomposity:-Giving charity, performing "yagnas"(holy rituals) on a grand scale only to impress others. Puroorava Chakravarthi is a fine example of this quality.8)Condescension:-Assuming oneself to be the greatest in personal and monetary affairs. Parashurama had this quality.9) Intolerance and ill-will:-Wishing that others are as unhappy as oneself. Hari Sakshi had this quality.10)Jealousy/Envy:-Trying to harm those who have harmed you. Poundareeka Vasudeva had this quality.Even if men and women do not possess every quality mentioned above, they may have atleast one or two qualities out of the 10 bad qualities. Therefore, these qualities have to be sacrificed at the "Bali Peetham" (navel) to enter the sanctum santorum of the temple with a cleansed and purified heart and mind.The process of sacrificing the bad qualities at the "Bali Peetham" is as follows:-

As we enter the temple tower (Gopuram), and past the "Dhwajasthambam", we must stand next to the "Bali Peetham" with folded hands praying fervently, "I am sacrificing all my bad qualities and tendencies here at the 'Bali Peetha'. Now I do not possess bad qualities. Now I am going to enter the sanctum santorum of the temple to have the 'darshan' of God."After offering salutations to the "Bali Peetham" and purifying ourselves we must enter the "Moola Sthaanam" (sanctum santorum) of the temple without any thought or feeling. When we are able to enter the 'moola sthanam' totally devoid of thought or feeling, such a state is called as "Samadhi."(To be continued.....)

I understand. I got this book in telugu from Sri Vidyaranya Swami Narasaraopet, Guntur Dist.Ashramam.The Mataji there gifted it to me and told me that it is a rare book as it was out of publication.If I ever know anything about the tamil version, I shall post details on my blog. Regards,Gayathri